Today’s lesson we focused on animations. Upon further reading I discovered there are five main types of animation:
Cutout- this is one of the easiest and quickest forms of animation
Stop-motion – this includes but is in no way limited to, plasticine animation
Pixillation – Humans become the puppets
Drawn – A classic form of animation-such as many original Disney animations
Computer – Also known as CGI which is found in many games and movies
(Moving Image Education)
Whilst exploring various sources on animation something I found really interesting was on the Moving Image Education website which discusses the almost endless opportunities when it comes to animations. As shown in one of their video examples; leaves can be turned into dolphins; rice; paint; jewellery; pasta; ice; almost anything can be placed under the camera and be animated. Likewise, just about anything can be used as the background (Moving Image Education) . I found this so exciting as children’s imaginations are often incredible and endless. The following quote came to mind which I absolutely love when it comes to children and their creativity. I particularly liked the idea of incorporating nature into their animations as this would then allow you as a teacher to cover so many topic areas and could lead to discussions about anything from seasons to the importance of wildlife conservation.
(Pixabay. com, 2018)
This not only allows children’s creativity to blossom it also makes this a more accessible activity as at the simplest level besides the iPad children could use many every day objects found around the classroom from a pencil and a piece of paper to ‘treasure pieces’ used in mathematics. This could also incorporate arts lessons as children could design and create their own props.
Before creating our own animation with props we were given time to explore puppet pals and create an animation cased upon a fairytale we had previously read. We were to create a story with a beginning, middle and an end which included voice recording, movement and change in size of the characters. The app was simple and easy to use and if different packages were purchased it gave children the opportunity to take pictures and use the faces of themselves or friend to be the star of the story. After using this app I have found that this could be another great way to encourage and engage children who usually struggle in engaging with story writing. As Beauchamp discusses (2012, p.55); “e-Inclusion aims to use digital technologies to minimise the problems that pupils with learning difficulties experience”. It also gives all pupils the chance to bring their stories to life and “through the use of ICT and technology it could allow pupils to accomplish something that could be difficult or even impossible to achieve in any other way”.(Beauchamp, 2012, p.54).
Once we had a chance to explore puppet pals we then discussed the IStopMotion app on the iPad. As a class we were provided with various props and there were no limitations as to what we were to create. We used paper and coloured pens to create the ‘sea’ and the ‘sky’ as a background as well as paper boats which we moved using the stop, start animation. I found this enjoyable however it was also challenging as there were so many small aspects to think about between each shot and often we would forget to move one piece and so would have to re-take the shot after watching it back. We used bear figurines as the main characters in our animation and the photos below show a brief example of what we created during the time given.
This was a fun task and I became more confident with using the app and I am impressed with what we managed to create using simple objects which would be found in most classrooms and basic colouring to create the sea and the sky. I am excited to bring the feeling of accomplishment I had to a classroom of children with all of their wonderful ideas. Below are the outcomes we decided could be covered within this lesson in a classroom.
“I can explore and experiment with digital technologies and can use what I learn to support and enhance my learning in different contexts. TCH 1-01a”
“I have the opportunity to choose and explore a range of media and technologies to create images and objects, discovering their effects and suitability for specific tasks. EXA 1-02a”
“I enjoy exploring events and characters in stories and other texts and I use what I learn to invent my own, sharing these with others in imaginative ways. LIT 0-09b / LIT 0-31a”
(Education Scotland, 2004)
This has been one of my favourite resources we have looked at so far as the opportunities for children’s imaginations are almost endless and the pride children would feel having created the animation from start to finish would be great for their self confidence as well as the opportunity to cover so many areas of the curriculum.
References
Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary Classroom: From Pedagogy top Practice. Pearson.
Education Scotland (2004) – Curriculum for Excellence; Experiences and Outcomes [Online] Available at: https://education.gov.scot/scottish-education-system/policy-for-scottish-education/policy-drivers/cfe-(building-from-the-statement-appendix-incl-btc1-5)/Experiences%20and%20outcomes [Accessed on 24 February 2018]
Moving Image Education website: Animation [Online] Available at: https://movingimageeducation.org/create-films/animation [Accessed: 24 February 2018]
Pixabay.com. (2018). Free Images – Pixabay. [Online] Available at: https://pixabay.com [Accessed: 24 February 2018]
